The Devil's Angel
by ThexBlairxWitch
Summary: Yeah, so the title is a bit of an paradox to the tone of the story. But w/e. It's three years after Percy saved the world. A halfblood is discovered in New York City, and she travels to Camp Half Blood at Chiron's suggestion and makes an unlikely friend.
1. I Crash a Centaur Party

**Well. **

**Hey guys.**

**Proof that I still exist and am not mortally ill, huh. **

**Killing myself for not posting anything. I seriously despise my mother for taking my computer away (and yes, I'm not even supposed to be using it now either).**

**So I finished the Olympians series recently (D'X It's over!!!) and honestly I just love love love those books. They're so funny. So I thought, 'Hey, there's still a free character here. I'll just fast-forward the time, write my own plot, and try my hand with a new character.' Worked out pretty well so far. **

**Oh, man, I can't WAIT to write more of this (so says I, who actually half the time can't manage to write anything… T_T okay, ignore that). **

Saturday morning, I asked my chauffeur to drive me to the park to rollerblade. I don't know about you, but there's nothing that waked me up more than fresh morning mist whipping across my face while I'm zipping around on rollerblades. Especially because I go incredibly fast and can't see a thing past a yard in front of me.

Lucky there aren't many people around Central Park at 6:30 on a Saturday morning.

I rode in the back of the gunmetal limo, pressing the window button up and down and back up and back down again. Window buttons are just entertaining, the way they let things like air and noises in and out.

When we got there, I told the driver to be back in an hour, then threw open the door and jumped out, hitting the ground rolling. I was a little wobbly at first, and I almost ran over the black metal trash can, but that's what happened every morning. Soon I was whizzing along the paths.

I laughed at the terrified face of a mom pushing a baby stroller as I brushed by an inch away from said stroller.

Ten minutes later, a panicked bleat ended my experiment of how long I could manage to skate with my eyes closed. When I looked, there was a guy standing frozen in the path a few feet away. Of course, at the speed I was going, there was no way I could avoid hitting him. I just had time to shrug before we collided.

So that was why my dad insisted I wear my helmet and kneepads.

Sitting up, my head spinning with one of the wheels on my skates, I examined my surroundings. I was ready to apologize to whoever it was I'd just run over and maybe offer something for consolation, but he was already scrambling to his feet. Before I could say a word he trotted away through the mist.

I blinked.

Trotted?

My curiosity took over. I replayed the scene in my head. He had had curly dark brown hair, two bits of which were formed into large points, and wore shaggy faux-fur pants… whoa.

I definitely had to have a pair of those pants. I hoped they came in different colors.

Immediately, I got up and skated after him, as best I could over the grass. Maybe I should've taken the skates of first, because the wheels got sludgy fast. I frowned. Pulling one foot out of the muck I had created, I continued determinedly on.

Eventually, I started seeing colored lights through the fog. Suddenly, a voice blasted through the air like a foghorn; club music playing underneath.

"Whoooooooooohooooooooo!"

As I pressed forward, a group of shapes started to appear. When they grew clearer, I recognized one of them as the guy I'd crashed into.

"Hey!" I called, waving my arms to keep my balance when another of my feet got mired. "Curly! Where'd you get those pants?"

He turned, as did his companions, and his face was filled with horror. "You followed me?"

I nodded. "Duh. I want your pants."

"You want me… but I'm not – I mean, these are original."

I examined his friends, all of whom had the same hairstyle, not to mention the same pants. "Obviously they're not," I pointed out.

He shifted uncomfortably. "Uh…"

"Listen," I told him in a persuading voice, "I can pay you. Whatever you want. I just _need _to have a pair of those pants."

His eyes glazed over slightly, and he mumbled a few things like "Styrofoam," "plastic," and "enchiladas." His friends muttered to each other.

I waited patiently while he fantasized, but then he shook his head. "I'm sorry. I can't."

"Why not?" I huffed, crossing my arms.

"Uh… they're…" He thought for a second. "For club members only."

"Club? What club? This club? Fine. I'll join. Can I have my pants now?"

"You can't!" he blurted.

"Watch me." Balling my hands into fists, I stomped past the group into the 'club'. Ignoring the fact that my foot got stuck yet again and I almost fell flat on my face, it worked pretty well.

I kept walking, despite their protests behind me, into the party.

Suddenly I bumped into a monstrously tall man wearing a striped child's party hat and a T-shirt splattered with paint balls.

"Whoa!" he boomed down at me. "Hey there, little half-blood dudette. Come to join the party?"

I put my hands on my hips and glared up at him. "It's not nice to call people halfbloods." It got on my nerves when people mentioned my Swedish blood.

He blinked, taken aback. "Wha – wait, who's your parent?"

"My parent is Devin Roebling, of course."

"Oh." He nodded like a bobblehead with a loose spring. "The rich dude. But, like, he's mortal, right? What about your other parent?"

"Mortal?" I seethed. "Of course he's mortal. Everyone dies. And it's –"

"Hey, whoa whoa whoa. I meant who's your _godly _parent. Gods aren't mortal. If you were mortal you couldn't see me."

He turned away with a look on his face that said, "Okay, I'm avoiding you now," and left to join his invisible buddies. When he turned, he revealed a lower body that was horse rather than human.

I gaped after him, finding my voice only when Pants Guy trotted up next to me.

"Centaur!" I shouted, pointing after the guy.

He sighed. "Well –"

I whirled to face him, the fine blonde hair flowing out of my helmet whipping my cheek. I patted it down to make sure it didn't frizz, and gave Pants Guy a closer look.

The hair, the pants, the trot…

"And satyr." I thought for a second, and my face fell. "Dang. That means no pants."

He laughed, half relief, half wary. "My name's Grover."

"So what's going on?"

"Erm…" Grover fidgeted. "Out of control centaur party?"

"And what was he…" I processed what he said and forgot the questions the centaur had raised. "Centaur party?"

"Yeah," he said quickly, "but we've almost got it under control, so you can just, um, leave and not worry about it."

"Leave? Right! I'm gonna ride a centaur and you can't do a thing about it!"

I tore off, my skates still getting sucked into the mud. Eventually they stuck so deep that I yanked my feet out, continuing through the squishy ground without even socks. The grass and muck was cool as I ran over it.

I saw a shape forming through the mist. Another centaur. When I was close enough, I coiled my legs like a spring and launched myself through the air.

Landing square on his back, I surprised him into rearing. and grinned as I held on. The ground-covering leap was the only thing I had ever really learned from all those ballet lessons.

The centaur took off, galloping wildly through the party. He knocked quite a few of his friends' drinks out of their hands as he barely weaved and dodged through the crowd. They snorted in indignation as we shot past.

I peered around his shoulder, and the huge amount of speed exhilarated me. I let out a huge whoop, my voice ringing high and clear and being torn to shreds by the wind.

At the sound, the centaurs all raised their heads.

The centaur I rode continued galloping aimlessly, and I laughed. Suddenly, the thunder of hooves began to grow behind us. I turned.

A huge group of excited centaurs ran behind us, yelling spontaneously and wordlessly.

"Ah, man," I muttered. Causing a centaur stampede definitely would not go over well with Grover and his satyr buddies.

I pulled on my mount's shoulders, wondering if it would have the same effect as tugging a horse's reins. He shouted something in Greek that I didn't pay attention to, and slowed, rearing on his hind legs and prancing a few feet until I let go. I felt mud spray my back as the stampede behind us dug their feet into the ground to stop in time.

When I turned, they were staring at me in puzzlement, wondering why the party game I had started had ended so abruptly.

Grover hurried out of the group, panting. He ran up to me, grabbed my hand, and half helped, have hauled me off the centaur. I stumbled down onto the boggy ground, almost impaling myself on his horns on the way. Then I got my balance and turned to him, grinning.

He stared at me for a moment. "Whose kid _are _you?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. "About that. Could you explain it to me?"

Grover fidgeted.

"Tell me! What's with this 'Who's your parent' crap?"

My hair staticked upwards. Grover's eyes went slit-pupilled.

"It's not 'crap,'" he said softly, his voice terrified. "Let me explain."

I tapped my foot. "That's what I've been waiting for."

He started walking, and beckoned me to follow. "Okay. You know the Greek Gods?"

"Yeah, duh. Greek is like the only class I ever really get."

He sighed. "They still exist."

I blinked at him. "No way. How?"

"They've always existed," he told me, choosing to look at the treetops instead of at my face. "It's just, they're connected to Western civilization, so they've always been moving around. From the Greeks and Romans to the rest of Europe, like Britain and France, and now it's here."

I blinked again. "Wow. That's awesome. So what's with the parent thing?'

"Well, you remember how the gods always ran around having kids with humans?" I nodded. "They still do that. Their kids are called demigods, or half bloods. How old are you?"

"Fifteen."

"You must not be the child of a very powerful god, then," Grover said, nodding. "If you were, you probably would have died in a very unpleasant way by now."

"Unpleasant?" I asked. "Like how?"

"Monsters eating you, monsters tearing you apart, having an 'accident' with a tall building or a moving vehicle…"

I wrinkled my nose. "Oh. That unpleasant."

He nodded. "That happens to a lot of heroes. They go on a quest and die young."

I thought for a moment. "So how do I find out my mom?"

"You may not," he said with a shrug. "Your parent needs to claim you. Although, with the system Percy set up a few years ago, she should have already. Maybe she did and you just didn't know it."

Another satyr trotted up, his hooves squishing in the mud, his legs dewed by the mist. "Grover."

Grover turned. "Hey, Lynden."

"We've got the centaurs under control and leaving," he reported, glancing at me, "and Chiron's here to help clear up."

Grover nodded, his face almost unreadable. "Okay. Thanks, Lynden." The other satyr trotted off, and he looked down at me again. "Come with me."

I shrugged. "Okay."

Again he stared at me. "Doesn't your dad tell you to avoid going with strangers?"

"Yeah. But I figured, you, well, _tried _to save me from an out of control centaur, so why not."

He turned away and headed for another stand of trees, with me trailing after.

Passing an old oak, he trailed his hand over its trunk and sighed briefly, before continuing.

What was that about?

Oh. Satyr. Nature. New York City. Right.

**Wheee!**

**I love this character. Fun, is she not? I'm just now realizing that I still haven't named her yet… oh well. I'll get working on it. Can't be that hard, right? I was thinking Clio or Nefi (short for Nefertiti, don't ask, please). But I don't know right now.**

**Oh well, later guys. **


	2. I Give Readers Background and Notes

**Had to change the name guys. HAD to. It was driving me out of my freaking mind.**

**Okay. So. Because I really can't stand the thought of having to write all the introduction and getting-to-know-you crap when I could really be having much more fun (and trust me it'll be more fun for you guys as well) writing wonderful fluffy funny as hell stories, I'm just going to give you the background information and just post whatever happens. It's easier on both parties, my dears. So. This is coming directly from the ref sheet I made for her. You can also check her in my profile in the OC list. **

**Character: Clio Roebling, 15 Daughter of: Iris, messenger goddess**

**Appearance: long pale blonde hair that falls to midback, light blue eyes that seem like a mixture of blue/gray/green (think of dew on grass), very fair-skinned. Face somewhere between heart and oval shape. 5'3.5"**

**Personality: Clio is very energetic and always doing whatever she feels like. She often says whatever is going through her head. She doesn't understand the concepts of poverty, romantic feelings, or danger/fear, which gets her into a lot of stupid situations. Never judges people until she's seen what they're like, but after she does, it's hard to change her mind. Once she has decided to do something, she is very driven, and often goes to great lengths to do it. Doesn't really give a damn about what people think of her; if they want to hate her, good for them, because she doesn't give them any reason to. **

**Background: father Devin Roebling is extremely rich but often absent (also is part Swedish). Socially awkward with his daughter (he tries to be a good dad but just doesn't know how), therefore Clio often receives money and/or whatever she desires as appeasement (basically he feels guilty). Because of this, Clio doesn't necessarily understand the concept of not having money – it's not that she's spoiled, she just doesn't get it. **

**Powers: Clio has always been able to make rainbow prisms. Often she shapes them into things, like bubbles or animals or words, when she's bored. They are also very useful: the sword she uses is made from a prism, and she can use them to make barriers. Also, the crystal wings she wears on a chain around her neck are a gift from her mother when Clio was very young: they are the wings of Arkhe, messenger goddess of the Titans, and can be used to fly to the Underworld/sea/sky. Finally, Clio can photon travel (and she feels extremely smart saying that), which is similar to shadow traveling but using a different medium (photons = packets of light, as those who have taken physics know). **

**Relationship w/ Nico (yes this IS a Nico fanfic. Get over it, will ya? I love that kid.): basically like Percabeth. Only backwards. As in, Clio's the stupid one who runs around getting herself in trouble, and Nico is the one running after her trying to get her out of it. Aw, they still 3 each other anyway. Course Nico doesn't want to/won't admit to anything, and Clio doesn't really care about that, because he's first and foremost her best friend whether he wants to be or not.** **And he often isn't very sure whether he wants to be. She does get herself into a lot of trouble. **

**YAY FOR FLUFF. **. . **And yes, I will put up whatever I happen to write, regardless. Of anything. I will try and keep it in order, though, I promise. **


	3. I Introduce Myself to a Dragon

**Sorry about this, guys. At first I wasn't gonna post this, but then I decided, what the heck. Why not. So, um, extra chapter! Yeah. Anyways...**

"So what is this place?" I asked as I trooped towards a hill after Grover. The satyr.

Satyr. I still couldn't get over that he was a satyr. Or that I had met other satyrs, plus centaurs. Party Ponies, they had called themselves. Party Ponies.

I liked that. It had a nice ring to it.

"It's called Camp Half-Blood," Grover explained wearily, the way he probably had about thirty times already. "It's a summer camp for demigods."

I giggled when he said demigod. "But am I really a demigod?"

He shrugged, and continued trotting. "Is your mom a goddess?"

"I told you, I don't know. It's not like I've ever met her, and it's definitely not like she's ever told me, 'Hey, so, by the way, I'm a Greek goddess.'"

Grover grumbled to himself, bleating in agitation every once in a while. Finally he said to me, "You're fifteen, right?"

I nodded.

"Then your mom should have claimed you by now. The rules Percy asked the gods to put in effect have been working fine for at least two, maybe three years now."

"Well, I don't know, maybe she forgot," I said, shrugging.

"She's probably one of the minor goddesses, or else you would definitely have been eaten up by now," he informed me over his shoulder, trotting a little faster.

"Yeah, that makes me feel a lot better," I called after him.

When I caught up to him again, I said, "So tell me again about this Camp Greek thing."

"Camp Half-Blood."

"Yeah, that one."

He sighed. "Well, like I said, it's a summer camp for demigods. You go there to get trained for fighting monsters, so you can stay alive longer. A lot of demigods kind of meet untimely ends, so it helps if you know how to kick at least a little butt."

I perked up. "Monster fighting? Really? Okay, that sounds cool. But what do we fight with?"

"Swords, knives, bows and arrows, things like that. Traditional Greek weapons."

I hopped around from one foot to the other, turning my walk into more of a skippy dance. "Whoa. That's incredibly awesome."

Grover turned his head to look at me, making a face. "It's a lot less fun than you think, especially when you're actually fighting for your life."

We had finally reached the foot of the hill, and we started climbing.

"What're those smoke signals coming from the top?" I asked curiously.

"Those aren't smoke signals," he told me. "It's a dragon."

I felt my eyes get bigger. "A dragon? Woooooow. Let me see!"

Grover bleated after me as I took off up the hill.

I reached the crest, hardly daring to breathe. Grover, panting, hauled himself up after me, and came up behind me as I stared in absolute fascination.

There was a large tree at the top of the hill. It was slightly gnarled and looked considerably old. From one branch hung a length of sheep's wool, glowing an interesting golden color. I identified it from my somewhat unreliable memory as the Golden Fleece that Jason and the Argonauts had stolen.

Curled around the trees base was an enormous dragon. It didn't look much like I had pictured it, all stocky and bright red and angry. Instead, it was more snakelike, with a longer body covered in deep green scales. At the moment, it was sleeping peacefully. Probably just got back from eating someone's pet Newfoundland.

I walked up to it, reaching a hand out to pet its browbone.

"What are you thinking?!" Grover squeaked. "He could eat your hand like it was a hot dog!"

I shrugged. I hadn't exactly been thinking at all. Ignoring his attempt at warning me, I touched my fingertip to its forehead.

A bright yellow eye blinked open sleepily. I thought to myself how well the yellow color went with the turquoise on my nails.

The dragon yawned, and I took a polite step backwards. It leered at me, a growling sound coming from deep in its throat.

"Hello," I said.

The dragon growled at me.

Grover whimpered from somewhere behind me. I shushed him with my hand, and crouched down to look the creature in the eye. "It's nice to meet you," I told the dragon.

It stretched a little, and stood up. It towered over me when it was at full height. It also probably didn't help that I was crouching down. I was engulfed by its shadow.

"Well, aren't you a big boy," I cooed up at it.

The dragon opened its mouth, belched a few small tendrils of flame, and roared.

I turned to look at Grover. He was slit-pupiled in terror, whimpering slightly. "I think he wants somebody to play with him," I said decisively.

Grover gulped, and slowly began to move again, like he was stuck in molasses. Suddenly he shot forward and grabbed me, dragging me backwards away from the monster.

When we were a good fifty feet away, he stopped, and collapsed on the ground. I sat up and looked at him. He was panting, and his pupils were still slightly vertical.

"What in the heavens do you think you're doing!" he demanded.

I blinked. "Playing with the dragon." Before he could react I stood up and went back to the creature, who was looking at us both in annoyance.

I cupped my hands together and drew them outwards, fingers spreading. An orb formed, like a bubble. It reflected the light, shimmering like a rainbow kaleidoscope.

When the ball was solid in my hands, I tossed it to the dragon. It opened its mouth and snapped at it, but the ball distorted around the sharp teeth and slipped away, like soap out of a child's hands. For a second it looked confused, but when I grabbed the ball and waved it in front of its face, its eyes starting gleaming with curiosity.

"Do you want the ball?" I asked.

Its thick, trunk-like tail slid side to side across the ground, scraping over tree roots. I think it was trying to wag it.

I threw the ball again, then turned to look serenely at Grover. "See? I told you he just wanted to play."

The satyr stared at me open-mouthed. I giggled. The dragon threw the ball back at me, and I caught it. Instead of throwing it again, I let it dissolve. The dragon whimpered at me.

I waved a bunch of my fingers around in the air. Multitudes of tiny glistening rainbow bubbles formed and floated toward the monster on the light breeze. It stared, enchanted, then began biting at the bubbles, trying to pop them.

I walked toward the dragon again. This time, instead of growling at me, it came up and pressed its head affectionately against my hand.

I cast another glance at Grover, who was still frozen in shock. Deciding I'd better go talk to him, I scratched my dragon friend under the chin, and said, "I'll be back, okay?"

It whined as I walked away.

"What'd I tell you?" I asked. "He's just like Bruno. Bruno was the pet Rottweiler of my old nanny."

Grover looked pale. "You – we – I need to bring you to see Chiron again." Taking me by the wrist, he dragged me past the dragon and down the other side of the hill.

"Why?" I asked, jogging to keep up and fighting a mad urge to tie up my hair.

"You don't need to be claimed anymore."

I thought hard about that for a few seconds. "Why?"

"Because." I heard the forced patience in his voice. "If you can do that, then it's obvious who your parent is."

"Really?" Now I was excited, on the brink of learning vital and extremely interesting, gossip-worthy material. "Who?"

Grover rolled his eyes. "Iris, goddess of rainbows and messages. I can't think of any other demigod who would be able to do that than one of her kids."

"Are there any other kids of Iris?"

"No," he told me after a slight pause, narrowly avoiding tripping over a strawberry vine. "You're it. But that's okay," he added hurriedly, "there are a bunch of cabins that have only one kid in them. Not all the gods have the time to run around siring children with humans."

As we trotted towards the camp, I pondered this. Then I realized something.

"Hey! Iris is the goddess of rainbows."

I only got a strange look in response.

"Look!" I exclaimed, and fumbled with my free hand for the chain around my neck. As quickly as I could, I yanked it out, and showed him the charm dangling from it.

When Grover saw the miniature charm that was basically my name written in a rainbow, his eyes widened. "Why didn't you tell me this?"

I gave him a look. "You think I knew what that was supposed to mean?" Then I sighed when I saw his face. "All I know is that my dad told me my mom gave it to me before she left, when I was barely a year old."

He shrugged. "Either way. You were claimed. No oaths broken. It's all good. Now we can just let Chiron know, and get you all moved into your cabin."

"I have a cabin?"

"This _is _a camp, you know," he told me as he pulled me past groups of the aforementioned cabins, then up the steps of a particularly large old house, on the porch of which sat a centaur and another man in a tiger striped shirt. They appeared to be playing cards.

"Chiron," Grover said breathlessly. "Chiron, she's already been claimed. Long ago."

Chiron looked up from his card game and smiled warmly. "Ah. Well, that certainly makes things much simpler. Now, which cabin will she be staying in?"

"Iris."

He raised his eyebrows. "And we have yet another empty cabin filled."

"I found out when she showed me she could do this," Grover added, and let my hand go, turning to me. "Go on, show them the... bubble thing."

The tiger shirt guy gave me a bored glance.

I frowned at Grover, and created a multitude of small bubbles with my fingers. Chiron laughed.

"Well, that's quite interesting. Clio, may I introduce you to our activities director, Mr. D." He gestured to Tiger Shirt Guy, who snorted.

"Oh! It's nice to meet you, Mr..." I trailed off as I realized what that meant. Then I pointed a finger at him. "You're the, the... the Wine Dude!"

Mr. D glared at me angrily, eyes flashing purple. It occurred to me that maybe I shouldn't have called him that, but in my Greek class, I had prided myself on knowing the small things that no one generally remembered. So, to make room for all those small facts, I had pack away some of the bigger ones. Which normally wasn't a problem, because the people around me were generally able to remind me. And when they weren't, it was just matter of standing quietly and taking a few minutes to dig the fact out.

Grover whimpered and pulled me away by the arm, calling over his shoulder to Chiron that he'd get me settled and give me the tour.

When we were a significant distance away, I yanked my arm away. "Must you always drag me?"

His eyes were once again slit-pupiled. Terror, goat style. "Do not _ever_ call him that again, if you value your life."

"What? Hasn't anyone ever called him that before?"

"Only one, and he barely got away with it." Grover shuddered. "It's generally a good rule of thumb to treat the gods with immense respect."

I frowned, filing that factoid into somewhere I could easily get to it. "Got it." It would probably get packed away later, anyway.

Grover set off towards my cabin, dragging me by the arm once again.

**Eh? Eh? *nudge nudge* Wine Dude. Ha. **

**Pleeze review. I love my reviewers much so. Come to me and review and you can also be loved. Okay, that sounds creepy, but still. Review. I promise to give cookies. **


	4. I Sort of Meet the Lone Lion

***floats in* Hello, dearies. Oh my gosh, this is quite a surprise, isn't it? I'm actually posting within a week of my last post. It feels so strange…**

**Okay, seriously, it's a little out of whack for me, but it makes me happy that I actually managed it. And yes, I know I told you all I wouldn't be bothered writing all the 'Clio is new at camp' stuff but this is all you get in that category. Wrote it because I had to include a bit that I'm gonna expand on later. **

**Enjoy! *note: doesn't own anything but Clio and current plot***

"So," I said as I traipsed around after Grover, "what am I doing first?"

Grover gave me a look. "I'm pretty sure you've got a free period right now. You can go around getting to know some people."

"Really!" My eyes brightened, and I smiled delightedly. "I wonder which cabin I should talk to first."

Grover shrugged, and started to slink away, thinking I was already off in my own world. I let him, having narrowed down the list of 'People to Go Talk To' down to the Aphrodite and Nike cabins. Well, whatever, I'd go to whichever one I reached first.

I headed away from the strawberry fields, scrutinizing the cabins in the distance. Looked like the Nike cabin was closest, so I'd check there before heading to the Aphrodite cabin, which glowed with bright colors.

It took me a total of fifteen minutes to get there. Fifteen slightly overheated, strawberry-vine scented minutes. Not that I minded, it was just different for me. Living in New York City, I didn't often spend my time walking through strawberry fields. The satyrs were still kind of new too, playing on their pipes and making the vines twist and dance gleefully.

When I reached the Nike cabin, I examined it for a few seconds; I hadn't really gotten a chance to look at it when Grover was dragging me around. It was fairly majestic, but not in an overly-showy way. Smooth off white stone with laurel wreaths ringing around the sides, and fireworks carved into the flame-lit walls behind the columns that supported the overhanging roof. Nodding my approval, I stepped up and knocked on the doorframe.

Nobody answered.

Peering inside, I saw that the cabin was empty, with the beds neatly made and the curtains pushed aside from the windows.

"Huh." Shrugging, I stepped back. They must have been out doing some activity. I walked away to go check on the Aphrodite kids.

As their cabin came in sight, I noticed a trickle of campers emerging, tossing their glossy hair over their shoulders as they walked through clouds of perfume. Smiling, I made my way over to the tall, slender girl with auburn waves.

"Hey," I said as I approached.

She gave me a subtle Manhattan onceover, taking in my outfit on the way, and smiled back at me when she met my eyes. "Hi. You new here?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I'm Clio Roebling."

The girl raised her eyebrows at my last name. "Sienna Van Siegel. What cabin are you in?"

"Iris."

"Ah." Again her perfectly plucked eyebrows moved. "I was wondering if there'd be any kids in that cabin."

In the near distance, a pair of her friends had stopped and turned questioningly, waiting.

"Well, I'm the head of the Aphrodite cabin. Been here five years." She displayed a platinum charm bracelet with hand-painted beads set in custom-made clasps.

I nodded as if I understood what the beads represented. It took me a second to realize that there were five beads, one for each year. "Wow. You really know how it all works. So, are you going to do something now?"

Sienna nodded. "We've got archery."

"Do you mind if I come along?" I asked cheerfully. "It'd probably a good idea for me to watch how some things work before actually trying them."

"Makes sense to me," she responded with a laugh, running a manicured hand through her hair. "Nah, it's fine if you come, as long as you have a free."

We turned and walked towards her friends, whom she introduced as Skye and Lee. It was less than a half minute before we were talking and laughing, and it took nearly seven to reach the archery range.

When we got there, the three girls grabbed bows and quivers of arrows, setting up next to their siblings (crazy, thinking that most people in this camp were related to each other in some twisted way). I stood between Sienna and Lee, leaning on the post that separated their lanes. Sienna shrugged off her cropped corduroy jacket, revealing a silk halter top that I was certain my personal shopper had brought me recently but I had turned down, because it didn't come in another color scheme.

As the girls chattered and got ready, I scanned the crowd of kids doing the same, running my gaze over everyone.

A flash of darkness caught the corner of my eye, and I turned my head a little to see better.

It was a boy with long-ish, slightly messy soot black hair and olive skin, wearing faded black jeans and a gray T-shirt displaying skulls that looked like they were made of smoke. He was focusing on the target as he anchored an arrow and drew the bow back, instead of associating with his peers the way nearly everyone else was.

I turned to the girls. "Hey, hey. Who's that?" I indicated the kid with my chin, keeping my eyes on him.

"Oooo," Skye sang, peering over my shoulder, her mangled tons of gold necklaces swinging forward to brush my shoulder, "got your eye on him?"

I turned to her, laughing and refraining from telling her that heavy hardware was on the way out. "No, he just _caught_ my eye. That and he isn't making any effort to associate with other people."

Sienna smirked. "He's Nico di Angelo. Only kid of Hades there is, and yeah, he's the loner type. Doesn't take much real interest in a lot of people, other than Percy and Annabeth, when they come around. Wouldn't blame you for 'having your eye on him', if you did."

"Fifteen years old, almost five foot eight, been here since he was eleven, had a huge part in saving modern civilization as we know it," Lee recited in a swoony voice, her eyes trained owlishly on Nico, who was nocking another arrow. "Think of it. Without him, there'd be no designer labels, no fashion, no New York City."

I looked at her over my other shoulder.

She smiled sheepishly at me, and I threw a questioning look at Sienna.

"Lee has a habit of _stalking _those she's obsessed with," Sienna told me with a roll of her made up eyes.

"It's not stalking!" I heard Lee protest.

"Staaaaalking," Skye muttered under her breath.

Lee's face burned, and she turned to shoot angrily at her target.

The four of us spent another hour chatting, giggling, and, in some cases, shooting. Eventually, the activity was over, and the sun was starting to sink. Everyone gathered up their bows and empty quivers, leaving the arrows scattered across the grass and targets as they headed to return their equipment.

As we were leaving, a bunch of the other Aphrodite kids came to join us, tossing their hair around and flapping manicured hands. I cast another glance at Nico, still stoic among hordes of chattering people.

Skye, unfortunately, caught my glance. "There she goes again. Girls, I think our new friend Clio has an infatuation."

I saw Lee beginning to puff up, but didn't bother trying to convince any of them that I hadn't looked at him before that for a full fifteen minutes.

Sienna laughed, I'm not sure whether it was with me or at me.

"He's just so quiet," I said with a shrug, for lack of any other reason why my eyes had been drawn to him.

Lee raised an eyebrow. "You know what I always thought of him as? A lone lion."

I stopped walking for a second in confusion, and Skye bumped into me. "I thought it was lone wolf."

"No, lion fits much better," Lee insisted, shaking her head vigorously.

"Why?" I asked.

She thought for a second, my indication being the way she tilted her head sideways. "Well, he's much more powerful and… _dangerous_ than most of us, 'cause he's a son of Hades. And, I dunno, something about a lone lion is different from a lone wolf. Lions just seem so much more lonely than wolves when they're single." After a moment, she screwed her face up at her word choice.

I shrugged. "Whatever. Lion it is, if that's what you say."

We reached the Big House, and went our separate ways to our tables, them promising to find me for the bonfire afterward.

I managed to find the table Grover had told me was mine earlier, and a dryad brought me a plate of Olympian pizza. Just as I was about to shove a full piece into my mouth, I noticed that everyone else was taking their plates to a fire in the middle of all the tables, and remembered something Grover had said about offerings. So I grabbed my plate and picked my way through the pulled out benches.

When I reached the blazing flames, I picked the biggest slice of pizza with the most toppings and, hoping my mom liked olives and bell peppers, dropped it in the fire.

Instead of the burned pizza scent I expected, I smelled early morning mist, dew on grass, the spray of a sprinkler, and hints of different melons. It was unexpected, and made me giggle as I backed away with my plate.

As I sat back down at my table, I spotted Nico once again, sitting by himself at his own table. He was staring at the pizza he was eating, and nothing more. It was probably then that I decided my biggest goal was getting him to call me his friend. Didn't look like it'd be an easy goal to achieve, either.

I bit into my dinner happily, the smell from the fire now tingeing the night air with an ordinary wood-smoke aroma. Then I heard a voice from behind me.

"Hey. Hey, you're the new girl, aren't you?"

Another voice replied to it before I could.

"Of course she is. Or did you just miss her sitting behind us to eat for the past few years?"

I turned around, curious.

Behind me was a jam-packed table. Two of the boys on it, sitting in the middle of the bench, were giving me inquiring looks with their mischievous gray eyes. At first, I thought it was a trick of the firelight, but when I blinked, I realized they really did look exactly the same; they were identical twins.

Their faces broke into matching grins at the exact same moment. "Knew we hadn't seen you around," one of them said.

"We're the Stoll brothers," the other informed me. "He's Connor, I'm Travis."

"Clio," I told them, grinning.

Connor opened his mouth to say something, but then the camp director, who I had learned was called Mr. D (a.k.a. Dionysus, or Wine Dude, if you really wanted to risk your life), started to speak in a bored manner.

"Well, then, little half-bloods," he said lazily, "here we are. Another night in this wonderful little camp. Before we dig in" – a few kids snorted; half of us were nearly finished – "I have a few announcements. First off, anyone who has a dryad involved activity, namely running, on their schedule tomorrow, you will instead be working on swordplay in the arena, seeing as some of the dryads aren't feeling so well." The campers remained quiet. "Secondly, the harpies would like me to remind you all, specifically those of you at the Hermes table, that it is against the rules to be out of your cabins after curfew. Anyone who breaks this rule is eligible to become the midnight snack of said harpies." A few of the Hermes kids shifted guiltily. "And, finally, what I have been told to inform you is the most exciting news of the night: we have a new camper in our midst." The tone of his voice didn't really indicate any excitement on his part, but there was a buzz that rippled through the camp as everyone turned their eyes on me.

Everyone except Nico. And yes, I did check.

"Hi, guys." I waved and grinned.

"Since you are sitting where you are, I'm assuming you were claimed by your parent." Mr. D sounded like he was reciting from an age-old script. "Why don't you rivet us all by telling us who it is."

Oh, yeah, like they already didn't know which table I was sitting at. But whatever. I used my hand to draw a large, shimmering rainbow in the darkness above my head as I informed them, "My mother is Iris."

"Hail, hail, daughter of rainbow goddess… all that," Mr. D mumbled, flipping his hand. I almost expected him to say 'whatever'.

At the sight of the arc that still glowed over me, I'd estimate that about half the kids' eyes bugged out to twice their normal size. The rest of them chattered incessantly amongst themselves. I could hear them wondering whether my mother had sent the sign just then, or I had actually created it myself. I smiled bigger.

Just then, Nico finally looked up. When I noticed, I waved at him, but the only reaction I got was a scowl as he dropped his eyes back to his plate.

Okay, I thought to myself, screw learning archery and swordplay and all that. My first priority will be to get that kid to be my friend.

Taking another bite of pizza and feeling people's eyes still on me, I considered this resolution. Well, maybe I'd still work on all that, and convince him to be my friend at the same time. It could be the most _important _priority to me, but not the only one. Not sure how happy Chiron would be if I ignored all my activities.

**Well now. Clio is a special little girl, isn't she? Clio and Nico (the lone lion pfffft). Their names sound very nice together. Did you know they're only one letter apart? Heeheehee. Keep an eye out for next installment. **


	5. I Join the Leagues of Flirtatious Naiads

***bows* Greetings, children. Pfffft, no, no, just kidding. Seriously. Anyways, so, where were we? Ah yes. Clio and her 'friends', the Aphrodite girls she just met. Well, we're skipping ahead a bit – Clio has now befriended the Stolls, among other kids, and managed to convince Nico that it definitely won't kill him to chill with her every once in a while. So now he's tolerant of her, even though he finds her ridiculous sometimes. Course, half the time he doesn't have a choice. Anyway, because of their 'friendship', Clio's 'friends' from Aphrodite aren't so happy with her. Especially Lee. Yeah, Lee was ready to kill her when she asked Clio if she could set something up with Nico for her and Clio said no. Sienna isn't the happiest, either, and no one's sure if Skye really like Clio in the first place.**

**Hooray for long author's notes. **

I woke up that morning feeling blissful as usual. I'd only been at camp a little over a week, but I had already decided that it was absolutely the coolest place on the known planet. I mean, forget the Bahamas, and Egypt, and Jamaica, and India, and wherever the heck else. I'd been to all those places, but none of them were this awesome. Seriously. There were the things that I was pretty good at, like sword fighting and running, but there were also other things, like pegasi to ride and a lava wall to climb (although I found the lava wall singed my hair a bit more than I liked) and archery. No way I'd trade this in for anything.

Rolling out of bed, I grabbed my shower bag, stuffed fresh clothes and a towel inside, and traipsed outside to the bathroom.

Once inside, I turned the knob, and grinned at the wonderfully hot water pouring from the showerhead. It had become my morning routine – grab clean clothes, go shower, then rush outside to learn what I was doing for the day.

When I stepped out of the shower ten minutes later, my clothes were gone.

I frowned. Okay, so the Aphrodite girls hadn't been so happy with me lately, but was it really necessary to go this far? Quickly, I traced a pair of rabbits with my finger. The bubbles formed, and floated down to land on the ground, where they sat preening themselves.

"Hey, hey, guys," I whispered to them. They both sat up attentively, like real trained rabbits. Quietly, I told them what I wanted them to do. They chattered and bounded out the door.

So I settled in to wait, towel wrapped around me. Funny, I never noticed how teeny this towel really was until now. It barely covered my butt. Spying a chair in the corner, I went and sat on it, crossing my legs the way I would if I were sitting in a dress. Then I thought about towel sizes. What was really the point of making so many different sizes of towels? Sure, people were different sizes, but why not just make them all pretty big? That way they'd cover the really little kids, _and _the super tall basketball stars. I decided I'd talk to my dad about it, ask him to send up some bigger towels with my last suitcase full of clothes.

The rabbits hopped in then, considerably larger. When I examined them carefully, I saw why: my clothes were floating inside their bodies. This made me giggle. For bubbles, they were pretty smart, keeping my clothes from getting dirty. I patted them and withdrew my only slightly wrinkled outfit.

After I had dressed, I knelt down and asked the rabbits if they could show me who had stolen my clothes. They bobbed their heads intelligently, and bounced outside. I followed curiously, thinking about what I could do to convince whoever it was not to mess with me again.

The little rainbow creatures led me into the trees. I stumbled over roots and through bushes, trying to avoid getting caught on anything. It was still fairly dark among the trees, and I managed to trip over something, muttering Greek curse words under my breath.

Eventually, the three of us reached the end of the trees. Slowly, cautiously, I peered past a trunk, and saw a group of girls sitting on Zeus's Fist. They were laughing, which struck me as strange, because half the group was from Aphrodite, and half was from Ares. Weird combination.

"What do you think she's going to do when she realizes her stuff is gone?" one of the Ares girls guffawed.

"I don't know," giggled an Aphrodite girl that I recognized as Lee. "I hope it's good, though."

"Tell you one thing," another girl drawled, "she's not getting those clothes back. She'll never be able to find them." I stifled a gasp when I realized it was Sienna.

"Thanks so much for helping us with this," Lee told another Ares girl enthusiastically. Then she turned to Sienna. "It's a really genius plan."

"Yes. And I managed to get something out of it, too." Sienna fingered a bracelet around her wrist, the one I had brought with me to put on when I got out of the shower. I hissed.

Bending down quickly, I petted the rabbits and thanked them profusely, then dissolved them. When I stood back up, I shaped a box with my hands, eyes trained on the group.

The girls panicked when they noticed the rainbow walls closing in on them. A few of them scrambled, and ran for the corners, attempting to escape but instead only hitting their faces on the unbreakable surfaces. I laughed at this.

I stepped out from behind the trees when the box was fully formed. Most of my prisoners looked fearful; some were banging on the walls desperately. I walked up to them. Their eyes narrowed in disgust when they saw me, dressed in the clothes they had stolen, grinning as I walked up.

"Hi there, guys," I said cheerfully, waving. "Didn't know you planned this party. Thanks for inviting me!"

No one said anything.

"Now, I do like party games, but treasure hunting has never been one of my favorites. Too much work, don't you think?" I smiled at them the same way I always smiled at everybody.

Still no response.

"Now, Sienna, could I have a chat with you? Just a girl to girl thing, no biggie." She gave me a wary glance, and took a step forward. I rolled my eyes. "Oh, come on now, I don't bite." Slowly, she walked up to me, her expression morphing from one of surprise to one of haughty disdain. "Right up against the wall." She pressed one hand to the wall.

With a simple motion, I opened it quickly, and she fell through it, tumbling past me down the rocks. I winced; hadn't realized it was that easy for her to lose her footing. "Oops," I said, "sorry. I didn't mean to do that. I swear!"

Sienna ignored me, pushing herself up and trying desperately to straighten her ruined outfit. When she gave up, she glared at me. "What do _you _want, Clio?"

"Oh, I feel like I should be asking you what you want from me, but since you asked, I'd like my bracelet back, thanks." I pointed cheerfully to the piece of jewelry, hanging around her wrist.

Sienna sniffed. "No."

I pushed at the air in front of her with my hands, and suddenly she was chained to a tree, shackled by rainbow bands.

"I thought you weren't powerful," she spit out. "Iris isn't a powerful goddess."

"No, she's not," I agreed lightly as I unclasped my bracelet and pulled it off. "But she's useful as anything, I'll tell you that. Wouldn't you say?" I matched her vicious scowl with an innocent smile. "Thanks for the fun. Be seeing you!" With that, I skipped away.

"At least let us go!" howled an Ares girl.  
I sighed, and flicked my fingers at them. The box vanished, and the group rushed down towards Sienna. They began to attempt to tug her free, and I giggled as I headed back towards camp.

Twenty minutes later, I had checked the activities board, and was waiting excitedly on the dock by the lake. I was canoeing today. Not that canoeing was amazingly exciting in and of itself, but a bunch of my other friends' cabins were doing it with me. The Hermes and Hades cabins. For a moment, I pondered if they arranged the activities alphabetically. Hades, Hermes, Iris. A, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i... maybe. Then again, maybe it was coincidence. The Hecate cabin was busy with archery, after all.

I heard raucous conversation, and looked up to see the entirety of the Hermes cabin making their way towards me, Travis and Connor at the head of the group.

I jogged happily toward them. They were snickering with each other, and as soon as I reached them, I asked, "What did you two do this time?"

"First," Connor laughed, "promise you'll keep Nico away from us?"

I nodded. Nico would've been stuck with me anyway, as we were both the only ones in our cabins.

"Okay, listen: last night, we stuffed his pillow with dirty pegasi feathers." Travis was trying, quite unsuccessfully, to cover his chuckles. "He's been hunting us all morning."

I burst into giggles.

"I know, right?" Connor said, grinning. Suddenly, he tossed an arm around his brother's shoulder and puffed his chest out. "It was a glorified moment, when we came up with that idea."

"And we're not finished yet," Travis added, wiggling his eyebrows. "Lion Boy had better be ready." Recently, I had told them about Lee's description of Nico as a lion, and we had spent the better part of an hour in giggle fits.

I nodded, still laughing, and spied Nico stalking towards us. "You better run," I whispered to the twins, and walked away to meet Nico.

"Hey," I greeted him as I turned around at his side and started walking next to him. He ignored me and glared at the Stolls. Sensing that he would start heading for them, I grabbed his arm and dragged him towards a canoe far away.

"I said, hey," I repeated when we reached the canoe. "Did you hear me?"

He sighed. "Hi, Clio."

"Good." I smiled, and started untying one of the ropes that held the canoe safely to the dock as Nico worked on the other one. I couldn't resist asking, "So, how did you sleep last night?"

Nico paused, and gave me a long look that I couldn't decipher. Probably deciding whether to kill me or use me to get to the twins. Then he returned to the rope. A few seconds later, he stood, rope in hand, and stared angrily at Travis and Conner, who were already out on the water. "I'm going to kill them," he muttered decisively.

I nudged him from behind, trying to get him to step into the boat. When he didn't move, I slammed my shoulder into his back, and sent him flying.

Nico looked up at me, half bewildered and half furious, from his spot on the floor of the canoe. "What the hell? I could've broken my neck!"

I shrugged, stepping gingerly onto one of the seats as the untied boat bobbed away from the dock. "Sorry. You weren't moving."

He sat up, fuming to himself about everyone being out to get him. I sat in front of him, smiling serenely and taking an oar. Despite the fact that canoeing wasn't generally exciting, it was nice to be on the water. Plus I had gotten to push Nico into a canoe.

As we paddled, Nico kept surreptitiously trying to get closer to the Stolls, and I had to keep steering him away. I tried distracting him by chattering randomly, but wasn't very successful. Eventually, though, he gave up on the twins, and just paddled silently. I turned to look at him inquisitively.

"You're not trying to kill anyone."

His eyes flickered to my face, then back out to the lake. "Is that _really_ so surprising."

I shrugged, laying my oar horizontally across the canoe and turning to face him properly. "I dunno. Is it?"

Nico gave me a funny look and put his oar down. "Are you implying something?"

I shrugged again. "I dunno."

His mouth twisted into a scowl, and he looked away.

At that moment, the Stolls paddled by, grinning and laughing as loud as they could. I took a second to wonder if they were purposely trying to annoy him before shaking my head. No point wondering; they were perpetually trying to annoy him.

I saw Nico's irritation with me turn into outright exasperation, maybe even anger, at Travis and Connor.

And just when I thought things couldn't get any worse for him, the Stolls burst into song.

A second later, I burst into giggles.

They were singing 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight'.

Nico didn't know what the point of it was, he just knew it was obnoxious. But I got it. And it was too funny.

Travis and Connor took turns singing the main part and the frog part, imitating the hilarious video I remembered seeing on YouTube of guys lip-syncing to the song like gays. I managed to stifle my giggles long enough to put on my best opera voice and sing the really super high part.

When I wasn't singing, I was watching everybody's reactions. Most of them laughed, a lot pointed, and some whispered. A few even joined in the song. The Stolls were trying so hard not to fall over each other laughing that the lyrics got jumbled a bit, but everyone was laughing too hard to care. I figured either Travis or Connor, or both, had told everyone about the prank, and the basis behind it.

Nico was busy yelling at the brothers, threatening them. Our canoe was tilted precariously because of how far he was leaning out of it. Suddenly, he leaned a little too far, and with a shriek, the two of us splashed into the water.

I was clawing madly to get back to the surface, desperate to hear the end of the song and the new reactions. One of my hands brushed against Nico's arm, and I grabbed it, but instead of yanking myself up to the surface, I managed to pull him under with me.

There was silence except for the furious bubbles as the two of us floated back up, Nico glaring insanely at me. I simply rode up on his arm, kicking my legs gently.

When we broke the surface, we both gasped for air. He used it to start threatening the better part of the Hermes cabin, and I started laughing again. The Stolls and their friends were paddling away madly. Nico was trying to swim after them. I frowned. Couldn't let him do that. If he got to them now, he'd kill them.

So I swiped the wet hair out of my face, and dragged him back beneath the water. He struggled against me, but I managed to hold onto him with one arm and use the other to form a very large bubble of air.

He kept kicking and fighting, and finally I let him go. It really was exhausting trying to contain him. As soon as he was free, he swam upwards.

Right into my bubble.

I floated patiently up to join him in the air bubble. When I got there, he was pushing against the wall, trying to escape. I sat and grinned at him until he gave up, slumping against the barrier to pant and glower at me from beneath the wet hair covering his eyes.

"Chill," I told him soothingly, as I guided the bubble down to the bottom of the lake and created a constant train of mini oxygen bubbles that came from the surface.

I spent a careful minute wringing my hair out and trying to get my clothes somewhat dry, allowing the excess water to escape. Then I smiled at him.

He was still looking daggers at me, and his bangs were still in his face. So I scooted over to him (not that there was much distance to cover. We were both sitting at the bottom of a bubble, after all. How far apart can you get when you're in a container with a surface that slopes into the middle?) and brushed it away from his eyes. The better for him to glare at me.

"Let me out," Nico spat.

I wagged a finger, still fussing with his hair. "Not until you promise to leave the Hermes kids alone."

"But they – "

"Shush. They pulled a prank. That's what they do."

He crossed his arms and settled some, choosing to sulk. "Yeah, and I'm soaking wet because of it."

"Actually," I sat back to survey my handiwork, "that was your fault. If you hadn't leaned out of the canoe so far, it wouldn't have tipped over, and you'd be dry. Come to think of it, _I'd_ still be dry." I grinned at him.

"Sorry," he muttered, averting his eyes.

"It's fine." I examined our surroundings. It looked pretty much the way I had imagined any underwater place would, except I could see something distinctly human-shaped swimming towards us. I put my hand on Nico's knee and leaned across him, pointing. "Nico! What's that?"

He followed my finger. "Naiad. Didn't you know they live down here?"

"No." I leaned further, pressing a hand against the bubble wall.

The naiad was getting closer. I could make out her webbed hands and long green hair now. She saw us, and a look of surprise crossed her face. She swam off. I jumped at her sudden disappearance, and my knees slipped on the bubble. A second later I was sprawled across Nico's lap.

He gave me a funny look as I giggled "Sorry" and pushed me up off him and into a sitting position, holding me a fair distance away. When he let go, I slid right back down next to him. Bubbles are fun like that.

Alarmed, Nico pushed himself away this time. Of course, he slipped back to his previous position. I was laughing madly now at his escape attempts.

"Look," I snickered, pointing, "you have an audience!"

There was a sizeable group of naiads hovering ten feet away, whispering behind their hands and pointing discreetly at us. When Nico saw them, he stopped scrambling, and looked from them to me and back again in bewilderment. Finally, he gave up, skidding down the bubble's side and coming to a stop next to me.

A pair of naiads swam up to us, obviously giggling to each other. They waved at me. I smiled brightly and waved back. Their faces livened at my reaction, and they tried waving to Nico. He glanced at them, but didn't respond. They pouted and swam back to their friends.

Nico sighed and leaned his head back, closing his eyes. "Will you just let me go?"

I didn't answer, because I was busy watching the entire group of twelve-plus naiads surround us.

Nico opened his eyes and jumped.

The naiads giggled amongst themselves and started waving and blowing kisses at him. He scrambled frantically behind me, only to find more naiads winking. That was the disadvantage of being in a three-sixty degree bubble. No escape.

I turned to look at him. "You're afraid of lake nymphs?"

"I'm not _afraid_ of _lake nymphs_," he snarled. "I just hate _attention_ from _flirtatious _lake nymphs. They're worse than the Aphrodite stalkers."

I shrugged, laughing at his reaction. He stopped and stared at me.

"You know what? You're almost as bad as they are. Keeping me trapped down here, with you and them. It's like you're in league with them. Trying to drive me crazy."

"I'm not," I told him, eyes wide at his accusation. "I'll let you go. But only if you promise to leave the Stoll brothers alone."

"I promise!"  
I gave him a warning look. "If you try anything, I won't hesitate to leash you to a tree."

He made a face that clearly said 'You are out of your mind', "Swear on the river Styx."

I shrugged. "Okay. Upsy daisy."

I cupped my hands together and sent the bubble bobbing upwards. When we broke the surface, I let the top half dissolve, so we were floating in a little prismatic shell. Nico sighed in relief, glancing down at the disappointed nymphs. "Thank. You."

Our little disc floated to the shore, and we both clambered out of it. It disappeared, and we shook ourselves slightly, still wet.

With a glance at the sun, I said, "We better head in. It's just about lunchtime."

Nico nodded warily, and we trudged up towards the Big House.

Suddenly, a group of campers jumped out of some nearby trees and burst into song.

"I love the Lion King!" I gasped when I recognized it as Can You Feel the Love Tonight.

I spotted the twins, holding each other and batting their eyes, and glanced at Nico to see what he'd do.

Sure enough, despite his promise, he broke into a run toward them, growling, "You're dead!"

"Nico!" I called after him. "You swore on the Styx!"

He either ignored me or didn't hear me.

I rolled my eyes, and whipped my hand around in the air like I was swinging a lasso. When I threw my hand in his direction, a rainbow rope materialized, looping around his middle. Quickly, I looped the other end around a tree and tied it tight.

Nico was abruptly yanked off his feet. The Stolls howled with laughter.

Narrowing my eyes, I twirled my finger, and the rope shortened, making Nico stumble towards me, trying not to fall again.

When he was standing next to me, I crossed my arms and stared expectantly up at him. He glared, as per usual.

"What?" I asked. "You promised you wouldn't. That gives me ever right to tie you to a tree."

Travis and Connor were making their way over, still snickering.

"What am I supposed to do?" Nico gritted. "Stand here for hours?"

I thought for a second, then shrugged. "Don't worry. I'll bring you lunch. You'll be free eventually." He stared at me mutinously.

The brothers were coming up behind me, supporting each other and guffawing loudly. I whirled to face them. "You two! Shut it. I'm saving your sorry asses. Do you know how dead you'd be if I let him go?"

They shut up.

I turned back to Nico, patting his arm. "Sit and be good. I'll bring food, and maybe I'll let you go." Then I turned and walked off, leaving him growling behind me.

**Um. Yeah. Nico doesn't do so well with teasing, pranks, or anything else in that category. He also doesn't do well with flirty attention with anything that looks remotely like a female of his species. As we have learned. Aw, but I feel bad for him, don't you? Poor thing. Review, puhleeeeeeeeeze. *big puppy eyes* I love it when I get some good commentary. Makes me feel like people are reading. **


	6. I Learn New Rules to an Old Game

**Hello once again, readers! I've got a fun couple chapters in store. Guess what's happening at Camp Halfblood today? That's right, a capture the flag game! Okay, well, maybe you didn't guess that, but it's fine. It's fine. Clio thinks she knows what she's in for. Does she really? And what the heck is up with Cole? **

That afternoon, I was supposed to be running after a bunch of dryads with the Apollo and Nemesis cabins. I arrived early, as usual, and sat under the shade of a sizeable maple tree. After ten minutes, I saw the two cabins walking my way. Since this was my first time going nymph-running, or whatever the heck it was, I was hoping that my fellow runners weren't going to be exceptionally skilled. I was a decent runner, but I wasn't really sure how I would fare against nymphs who had spent who knows how many years running from oversexed gods. So, you know, it'd be nice to have someone to commiserate with, if I sucked.

I stood as the other campers reached the small clearing, wondering exactly where it was we'd be running.

From what I could hear, the cabin leaders were arguing loudly with each other. Over what, I wasn't sure, so I walked over and listened.

"There's no way the Nike cabin will team up with you!" Cole Jernudd, head of the Apollo cabin, said heatedly.

"Oh, yeah? Well, I already asked them!" the head of the Nemesis cabin, whose name I didn't know, replied smugly.

Cole looked taken aback. "Really now. Should I assume they said yes?"

The other boy shifted uncomfortably. "Well, Simone said she'd think about it." He straightened up. "But I'm sure she'll come around in the end. After all, the Nikecabin would definitely want to be on a _winning_ team!"

"Which essentially means they'll be on our team," Cole scoffed.

"Why don't we wait and see."

"I'm sure I won't be disappointed."

"Teams for what?" I asked as the Nemesis cabin stalked off, wondering what could possibly warrant this amount of arguing. Other than a Stoll prank.

Cole turned to me, eyebrows raised. "Clio? Oh, that's right. I forgot, you've only been here for like two weeks."

"Less than," I corrected him. "What teams?"

"There's going to be a capture the flag game later," one of Cole's siblings explained.

"Oh. I know how to play capture the flag."

"I can guarantee you that you don't know how to play the Camp Halfblood way," Cole laughed.

I wrinkled my nose. "What's the big difference?"

"Plenty," another girl assured me.

"Well, okay," I allowed. "But you didn't answer my question. What teams?"

"All the cabins ally themselves on one of two teams," Cole told me. "As of now, we're allied with Hermes, Athena, Hephaestus, and Hades."

"Oh. So the other team is…?"

"Ares, Nemesis, Morpheus, Dionysus, Aphrodite for reasons I don't understand…" He shrugged. "It's gonna be a tough one. I'm not entirely clear on the workings of some cabins. I just know we've got our big allies that we want. Oh, Poseidon's with us, too. Which is basically Percy. Speaking of which, you're the head of Iris, wanna join with us?"

I smiled ecstatically, thinking about how much fun this game would be. "Sure. Sounds better than the other team. So why were you arguing with them?"

Cole scowled. "Nike's goddess of victory, right? So everyone wants them on their team. It's kind of a luck thing. Precognition and whatever. The team they're on generally wins. But Kyle over there," he jerked his thumb to where the Nemesis members were milling around, "seems to think Nike's with him. To which I say, in your wildest dreams."

I pondered for a moment. "I have archery with them next. Do you want me to see if I can convince Simone?"

Cole shook his head. "Thanks, but nah. I highly doubt they'll refuse our team. Simone is practically arch-enemies with Leah." Leah was head of the Morpheus cabin, and it was true, she and Simone generally hated each other.

"Well, okay." Just then the nymphs began to melt out of the trees. I groaned. "Oh, man. This isn't hard, is it?"

Cole looked at me. "Uh, it depends. Can you run?"

I nodded uncertainly.

"Then it shouldn't be too bad. No one really keeps up with the nymphs."

"Okay, I think I'll survive," I said, sighing in relief.

The group gathered together, with much glaring between the Apollo and Nemesis campers. As we shifted around, some people stretching, some staring off into space, the nymphs informed us that we would be taking a shortcut through the woods down to the strawberry fields.

"Everyone, make sure you stay _between _the rows of berry vines," a nymph who had said her name was Maple told us seriously. I realized, a little belatedly, that she was the tree I had been sitting beneath. "If anyone steps on so much as a leaf, believe me, we'll know. Got it?" The campers muttered 'yes'. "Okay, good. Let's head out."

The group of nymphs started off at a steady, loping run that wasn't even in the vicinity of the word 'jog'. They disappeared quickly as the demigods that were trying to follow them crashed through the branches and brush that seemed to be blocking us at every turn. Whoever had decided this was a shortcut was way off their rocker. I noticed, with a degree of satisfaction, that I was managing to remain at the head of the pack, just behind a Nemesis girl who was extremely tall. Of course, I had no clue where we were, or what direction we were running in, just that we were hopefully going to end up at the strawberry fields. But I left trailblazing to Tall Girl, and focused on skipping over the roots and vines that were doing their utmost best to trip me. Suddenly, the dim shadows gave way to bright sunlight. I could see the dryads standing at the edge of one field, Maple in the front with her hands on her hips.

Eventually, we reached them, even though it seemed to take forever. By the time we got there, I was panting, and had to stand for a few minutes with my hands on my hips, meantime ignoring whatever it was Maple was saying. Before I knew it, the nymphs had taken off again, and I suppressed a groan as I picked up my legs to follow. Just because I was all right at running didn't mean I had to like it.

We got a brief respite when some especially clumsy kid managed to take a wrong step and squash a cluster of strawberries, for which he received a severe tongue lashing from Maple. Thankfully, we left the field a few minutes after that, heading back to camp along the normal path.

The nymphs made us run until we reached the clearing we had started at. By now I was a little farther behind, but not by much. My best guess was that I was maybe the sixth person to be able to stop running. As soon as I got the chance, I flopped into a patch of shade, breathing hard.

Cole trotted to a stop next to me, puffing. I glowered up at him.

"Liar. You said this was easy."

He shrugged, not guilty looking in the least. "Depends. At least you can run."

"I wanna go jump in the lake," I moaned, wiping sweat off my forehead.

The conch horn blew, signaling lunch.

"Too late," Cole observed. "I would have gone with you, too."

The last few people were stumbling in, so the group headed towards the Big House for some much-needed nourishment.

After lunch, I wandered towards the archery lanes, trying to remember who else was doing this with me. Was it… no… um… well, there was the Nike cabin…

When I reached the lanes, my question was answered. Of course, the Nike kids, and then there was also the Demeter cabin.

I spent nearly a half hour shooting a multitude of arrows, and I was happy when most of them found their way to the target. Of course, one of them missed because a frog managed to hop in front of it at just the right time, but we're not going to discuss that. Let's just say I felt bad for whoever had to collect the arrows. But the conch horn sounded way early, and I turned inquisitively to those around me, wondering why. There was a buzz of chatter, and I realized: it was time for the capture the flag contest.

Most of the kids were racing towards the woods where Chiron was standing, but I managed to catch Simone before she disappeared in the crowd.

"Hey," I said, "you know which team you're on?"

She grinned, her pearly teeth glowing against her brown skin. "Yeah, the winning team."

"Which one is that?"

"Well, Cole and Kyle both asked if I'd be on their teams, but I decided to stick with Cole. What about you?"

"I'm with you," I told her.

She raised her hand for a high five, and I slapped it as we took off after the rest of the group.

When we got there, the kids were already divided down the middle into two teams. I sidled over to the 'winning side' with Simone, winding through the crowd of campers until I located Nico, whom I also sidled over to. Bumping him with my shoulder, I asked, "So, how does this work?"

He shushed me. "Listen. Chiron's explaining."

"So, as of now, the teams are decided. Red Team is Aphrodite, Ares, Hypnos, Morpheus, Demeter, Dionysus, Hephaestus, Hebe, and Nemesis. Blue Team is Apollo, Athena, Hades, Hermes, Iris, Poseidon, Hecate, and Nike." I noted that Kyle was scowling as Cole grinned triumphantly at him. "Now, I want a clean game. No maiming, no killing. Magical artifacts are allowed. Minimum requirement is a sword. It would be preferable if everyone had a helmet with their team's color plume, but it is not mandatory. Nor is armor, although it is highly suggested. The boundary is the creek. Team that brings the other team's flag to their side first wins. Are we clear?"

The campers all agreed with him.

"All right. Suit up and head to your respective territories. The conch horn will signal the beginning and end of the game."

I followed the rush of the Blue Team to a pile of helmets, armor and swords. People dove at the pile, fighting over the best equipment. I wrinkled my nose. "Do I have to wear all this?" I asked Nico.

He glanced at me, his black sword already in hand as he grabbed a helmet. "I'd suggest it, but no."

I noticed that there were some other campers who weren't wearing the full required protective gear. Some had just the helmet; some had just the chest armor. Cole was busy giving people assignments, his blue plume bobbing with every movement of his head. I bounced over to him, forgoing helmet and armor.

"What should I do?"

He gazed at me intently from beneath his helmet. "You'll be in charge of guarding the flag," he told me.

At his words, there was a burst of outrage and surprise.

"You can't let her be in charge of the flag!" a Hecate guy yelled. "She's never played this game before."

"Yes, I have," I retorted hotly, neglecting to admit that the last time I had played had probably been in fifth grade, with significantly different rules.

"Why are you putting her in charge of guard duty?" someone from Athena asked.

Cole shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "I trust her with it," he said at last. Nico snorted quietly behind me. I turned to look at him.

"What?" He shook his head. "What is it?"

"Tell you later," he muttered.

"All right," Cole shouted, ignoring multitudes of other protests. "Everybody have their assignment? Then let's move, people."

The team scattered, streaming into different parts of the woods. Nico was heading off on sentry duty when I grabbed his arm.

"Why did you snort?" I asked. "You said you'd tell me."

He gave me a look that clearly said he thought I would've let it go, then rolled his eyes. "That guy, Cole, obviously has a thing for you. There's no other reason he'd put you in charge of something; it's an illogical move." I opened my mouth to protest, but he kept going. "Sorry, just saying. You've never played this before, and you might get overwhelmed. It's safer to put someone with experience in that position."

I pouted, trying to think of something condescending to say back. "You sound gay when you say that."

Nico made a face. "Say what?"

"'That guy, Cole, obviously has a thing for you.'" I imitated him in a gayer version of his voice, tossing my hair around and using a flippy hand gesture.

His scowl deepened. "I didn't mean it like that. I was just answering your question."

I shook my head. "Whatever."

"Immature," he muttered under his breath as he headed for the trees.

"I heard that!" I shouted after him. "And I'll prove to you that I can do it!"

If I could just find the flag.

…**finding the flag would probably be a good start. Can't exactly guard it when you're not sure where it is. **

**Nice long update.**

**I ask you again: what the heck is up with Cole? Yeah, okay, he's obviously got a thing for Clio, but what he doesn't have is that flamboyant way of showing it the way his dad does. That's his issue. Whatever, not like she really cares. She's friends with just about anybody who doesn't hate her. Which is how she convinced Nico. **

**I'll post the next bit of this, like, tomorrow. And I've got an idea: in the meantime, you can review! :D How does that sound? If you **_**really**_** wanna be awesome, you can recommend this story to your other PJATO fanfic loving friends. I do pride myself on having very high quality work, you know; you can tell them that. **

**Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm obnoxious. So sue me. **


	7. I Earn Myself a Few Bruises

**I'm officially fifteen! So much for 'like tomorrow night'. Sorry. I've had a crazy couple weeks…. or, you know, month. Or two… My dad got in a car crash (he's okay, but the car is gone, and we got a new one), I got way too much homework in my classes, I've had volleyball practice for like at least three hours a day. I've been up till midnight every night trying to finish things, people! And I've had lyric thoughts (other thoughts too :P) going through my head because I've been listening to a lot of All Time Low and Boys Like Girls, so I had to get most of those out. Urgh, school. I hate school. And Journalism class.  
Anyways. Shutting up now. Here's the chapter. **

I heard the conch horn blow, and cursed, diving for the trees. If I couldn't find the stupid flag before someone else did, I was dead.

Running, stumbling between tree trunks, I had a moment to think, 'Wait, isn't this what I was doing earlier?'

There was yelling a couple hundred yards off to my left, and I cursed again, pushing my legs faster, before I recognized the voices as members of my team. So I veered in that direction, hoping they could point me to the flag.

I came across a girl pushing a stunned kid with a red plume away from her. The kid stumbled backwards, groaning, into some bushes. "Hey," I called out to her.

She whipped around, sword at the ready, and I recognized her as one of the girls from the Hermes cabin. When she saw me, she lowered her weapon. "Aren't you supposed to be guarding the flag?"

I nodded. "Yup."

"Then why do you look like you're about to run off for a nice pedicure in the middle of the city?"

"I didn't want to put any armor on," I said with a shrug. "Listen, would you happen to know where the flag is?"

She pulled a face, like 'I can't believe we're trusting our flag to this girl'. "Go find Zeus's Fist. You know where that is?"  
I thought for a minute, trying to remember where exactly I was. "Uh, yeah."

"That way," she said, rolling her eyes and pointing behind me.

Hey, at least I had been heading the right way.

I took off at a jog, calling, "Thanks," over my shoulder.

As I ran, I heard the crash of footsteps through the undergrowth every so often. Each time, I prayed that it wasn't unopposed members of the Red Team, on their way to the unguarded flag.

Finally, I burst through the trees, and saw the mound of boulders with the bright blue flag perched at the top. Not a bad spot; I'd be able to see most of my adversaries as they came at me. I started to climb to the top.

A couple minutes later I was sitting beneath the flag, catching my breath. It was quiet; the only sounds were the breeze and the chirping of a few birds. Looking up at the flag, I noticed a rainbow against the blue background. Great. It might as well have had an audio track to go with it screaming, "Hey everyone! Helpless girl sitting all alone right here!"

Ten minutes went by with nothing but more yells in the woods. I spent the time praying to all the gods I could think of that no one on the other team would be able to get anywhere near here. The gods that heard my incessant pleas probably thought I was a wimp that wouldn't shut up, but hey. Those Nemesis kids would be out for blood, despite the no-maiming rule, desperate to prove that they could still win in spite of the loss of an ally.

Just as I thought that, there was loud shouting, much closer than all the other noises of the battle. I sprang to my feet, wondering if gods ever actually answered prayers.

My sword materialized in my hand as the red-plumed group burst out of the trees, confirming my thoughts. Kyle was in the lead, and the small band consisted of Nemesis and Ares kids. My brain spewed long streams of curses, trying to think of the best way to keep six or so kids from reaching the top of the rock formation. It would have really helped to have another kid there right now, especially an Athena kid.

They started climbing toward me with triumphant yells, pleased that their job would be so easy. I recognized one of the Ares girls as part of the group that had stolen my clothes recently, and shifted my weight nervously. As I watched them, my brain finally latched onto an idea. I opened my hand to let my sword go, and it hadn't even dissolved by the time I was shaping a bow and some arrows. It was more time consuming than I wanted it to be, and I barely got a chance to shoot the first kid down with the blunt arrowhead before he reached me. He tumbled back down the rocks.

Quickly, I turned in time to shoot the next kid. Okay, I will be the first person to admit that it's a lot harder to hit an intelligent moving target than it is to hit a stationary target, but at least this girl was only like five feet away. She fell backwards to join her teammate.

I heaved a sigh of relief, and took my time nocking and firing the next arrow. Those two had been the fastest climbers, so I had just a bit more time.

Uh oh. Never mind. I couldn't fire three arrows at once.

Dropping the bow, I formed a barrier and encircled myself and the flag with it. The Ares girl from before saw what I was doing, and lunged forward, trying to make it through.

I giggled at her as she jerked to a stop, her body hanging in midair.

She glared at me through her bangs, and swung her sword arm, which had managed to make it through the barrier. As I jumped back, her teammates surrounded me, banging on the prism, trying to find a way through. One guy swung his sword at it, another slammed it with his shield. It shook a little, but held. I stood back, and sighed again.

Then I heard a cracking noise from behind me.

Whipping around, I saw a kid from the Nemesis cabin swinging his enormous axe at the splintered wall. Don't ask me how a magic artifact from Nemesis could be able to do that, but that's what was happening.

The kid saw my face, and grinned. "We call this the Hax Axe."

The blade of the axe connected, and the barrier shattered. The flat of the blade continued its arc, slamming into my shoulders. I was thrown forwards and barely kept my footing. As my brain raced, I seized the flag and my sword jumped into my hand. The seven of them surrounded me, grinning. It was clear that they were planning on taking some time on grinding me to a pulp, and I wondered how the heck I was going to survive alone.

"I thought you weren't supposed to maim people," I said breathlessly, spinning around and trying to keep an eye on everyone.

"Accidents happen," the girl who had been stuck in the barrier said, her voice falsely sweet. She lashed out at me with her sword, and I danced a step back, receiving a spear poke in the side.

"Guys, guys, calm down. You can take the flag, and then you'll win. What happens if you beat me, _then_ take the flag, only to find that because you wasted your time, my team had gotten your flag first?"

Kyle examined me critically. I grinned benevolently at him. "I'm right, aren't I?"

"Yes," he said casually, "you are."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

Kyle turned to one of his siblings. "Bring me the flag."

The girl did, and Kyle glanced back at the Ares kids and I. "We've got the flag; we're leaving. You guys can stay."

The circle broke, allowing the Nemesis kids out. I considered for a moment, and just as they all had their backs toward me, I launched myself through the closing gap.

When I latched onto Kyle's back, he tumbled forward in surprise, losing his footing. We rolled together down the rocks, and I was scrabbling desperately for the flag in his hands. We came to a stop, and I managed to wrench the flag from his hands, wincing at the bruises that I could feel forming. I popped up before he could register the fact that he had stopped moving, and dashed madly into the woods with the flag, away from the red team members who were making their way after me.

As I was running, I passed someone with a blue plume. I skidded to a halt, desperate for help, and realized it was one of the Stoll brothers. I couldn't tell which one, because of all the armor.

"Clio?" he asked incredulously. "What are you doing?"

"Running," I panted. "Red team… chasing me…"

Just then there were loud shouts from my pursuers. He frowned, readying his sword, and said in a dry voice, "Interesting strategy you've got. Not entirely sure it follows the rules. But whatever. If the red team doesn't have our flag, we're good. Cole and the others should be back with their flag any minute now. I'll help you out till then."

"Thanks," I gasped, bending over and catching my breath. The shouts were getting louder.

The group of kids burst out through the trees and advanced on us. The Stoll brother (still didn't know if it was Connor or Travis) grumbled, "How do you get yourself into these messes?"

I shrugged, gripping the flag and shifting a little behind him.

Just then, the conch horn blew, and there was more excited yelling from approximately seventy yards to our left. The Ares and Nemesis kids halted, their faces falling in disappointment. Slowly, they turned, and as one group we all trudged to the source of yelling, which was steadily moving away from us.

The Stoll took his helmet off and shook his head to get rid of the helmet head. When he grinned at me, I recognized him as Connor. I grinned back at him, and then realized I was still holding the flag, and I had no idea what to do with it. So I handed it to him, and said, "Congratulations."

He stared at me, then at the flag, then back again, and burst out laughing. "You're stupid," he told me.

"You're stupider," I replied.

Finally we emerged from the woods. Most of the camp was already there, either crowded around Cole, whom a few kids had on their shoulders, or scattered sullenly off to the sides, muttering. Cole had a flag draped around his shoulders that was gold, with a lyre glistening on it. I merged with the celebrating blue team, cheering jubilantly. Things eventually died down some, and Cole got back on the ground again, smiling in a blinding way.

"How'd you do?" he asked me. "Any trouble?"

I wrinkled my nose. "Yeah. Definitely."

His face turned shocked. "Really?"

"Uh huh." I rubbed my obviously bruised back. "But isn't that what's supposed to happen?"

"Well, yeah," he admitted in a slightly embarrassed way, "but, I don't know, I didn't think it'd be that bad."

"You don't even know what happened," I pointed out.

"What did happen?"

I explained about the group of seven that tried to jump me, the hax axe, and my jumping on Kyle. When I finished, he grimaced.

"Sorry about that," he told me. "But hey. We get to go eat now, and the winning team gets extra s'mores at the campfire."

My eyes got way big. "Seriously? Score!"

Cole laughed. "Tell me about it. Come on, to the Big House." Having said that, he led the way to the Big House.

I dropped back, scanning the crowd for a certain person. When I found him, I launched myself at him in a way very similar to how I had launched myself at Kyle.

"We won!" I told Nico happily, clinging to his arm.

He looked down at me blankly. "I heard," he responded, trying to disengage me.

"We get extra s'mores!" I continued cheerfully.

"I know," he told me.

I pouted. "At least act like you're excited."

"You forget that I've played this game many times before," he said, nearly succeeding for a moment in prying me off. The second he let go of me, though, I latched onto him again, gripping his elbow and towing him towards the Big House.

"Ow," Nico said suddenly, jerking away. I turned curiously, wondering what happened.

"What? Did I do something?"

"Not your fault," he muttered, twisting to look at his elbow. The back of his forearm was turning dark, faintly purple and blue. It looked the way my shoulder blade felt. He winced upon seeing it, then sighed and shook his head. "Some nutcase from Hephaestus bashed me with his shield. I'm fine."

"Who was it?" I asked immediately, crossing my arms indignantly. "Did you see?"

"No," Nico said with a shrug. "Doesn't matter. Wasn't against the rules or anything. Besides, what are you going to do? Jump the kid?"

"Maybe," I said after a second. Reaching behind me, I poked my own bruise and flinched.

"Got you too, did they?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "I told you, you should have worn armor."

I stuck my tongue out at him. "It was only an axe blade. I'm perfectly fine." Minus the fact that I'd have to sleep on my right side all night.

His face turned semi-startled. "An axe blade? What are you talking about? You could have gotten killed."

"I didn't know you cared!" I grinned. Okay, he was going to scowl in three, two, one…

Nico's face twisted into the predicted scowl. "I'd be concerned if anyone got nearly beheaded. If you don't recall, it's me who has to deal with the aftermath of death. I don't particularly want to see anyone's headless ghost in the middle of the night."

"Oh, yeah? Sounds like an excuse to me."

He ignored me, muttering, "Axe blade. _Only_ an axe blade…"

I poked his bruise lightly. He flinched away, and smacked my shoulder in a knee jerk reaction. I lurched forward in shock, feeling a curse-worthy twinge. The two of us stood there a moment, holding our injuries and feeling slightly ashamed, until he lowered his head and muttered, "Sorry."

"It's okay," I said, bumping up against him to prove it. "That was my bad."

The crowd pressed against us, and we were forced to keep moving along in the stream of excited chatter and boasting. I heard one boy, who looked like he was eleven or twelve, talking about how a group of Morpheus kids had ganged up on him, and how he had single-handedly bested them all. I snorted and rolled my eyes, continuing on towards the Big House, dinner, and extra s'mores.

**Phew. That's all I can say. Y'all be grateful I procrastinated my homework to write this for you. And I did procrastinate, lemme tell you. I put off rewriting the Declaration of Hades' Independence for this. Literally. That's my government assignment. **

**It's not necessarily a good chapter, but it's all I've got currently. Yes, I know it sucks. Yes, I despise the fact that it sucks. Oh well. I've had some writer's block issues, wanting to write things that either don't happen or happen way in the future. When they're 20-something. Yes, I am writing stuff for that, and yes, I'll probably post it eventually, but keep your pants on, 'cause it's not going up yet. **

**Review plz. I showed you I still exist, so show me you still exist. :]**


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